Systems and methods for content sharing using uniquely generated identifiers

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for location-based online content sharing using unique identifiers are provided. A server and a plurality of clients may be connected to one or more networks. A first client may send a shared content to the server. The first client may also send a first location of the first client as well as a unique identifier for the shared content. The server may store the shared content. A second client may request the shared content, and the request may include the unique identifier and a second location of the second client. The server may determine that the second location is within a predefined distance from the first location. Upon such determination, the server may send the shared content to the second client.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/494,451, filed Apr. 22, 2017 which is a continuation of patentapplication Ser. No. 14/604,297, filed Jan. 23, 2015 which claimspriority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/931,562, entitled“Computer Program for the Transposition of PINs Into Cloud Stores”,filed Jan. 25, 2014, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

Online content sharing services allow a client to upload a file. Thefile may be identified by a uniform resource locator (URL). Otherclients may access the file via the URL, and download the shared file.

SUMMARY

One aspect of the disclosure is generally directed to methods forlocation-based online content sharing using unique identifiers. A serverand a plurality of clients may be connected to one or more networks. Afirst client may send a shared content to the server. The first clientmay also send a first location of the first client as well as a uniqueidentifier for the shared content. The server may store the sharedcontent. A second client may request the shared content, and the requestmay include the unique identifier and a second location of the secondclient. The server may determine that the second location is within apredefined distance from the first location. Upon such determination,the server may send the shared content to the second client.

Another aspect of the disclosure is generally directed to systems forlocation-based online content sharing using unique identifiers. Thesystem may comprise a server connected to a network. A plurality ofclients may also be connected to the network. The server may comprisememory and processor. Memory may store instructions, and the processormay execute the stored instructions. The server may receive, from afirst client, a shared content, a first location of the first client,and a unique identifier for the shared content. The server may alsoreceive a request from a second client, the request comprising a secondlocation of the second client and the unique identifier for the sharedcontent. The server may determine that the second location is within apredefined distance from the second client and the unique identifier. Inresponse to this determination, the server may send the shared contentto the second client.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the summary isillustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. Thedetails of one or more implementations are set forth in the accompanyingdrawings and the description below. Other features, aspects, andadvantages of the disclosure will become apparent from the description,the drawings, and the claims, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a computer system including a network, afirst client, a second client, and a server, according to a describedimplementation;

FIG. 2A is a flow diagram depicting a method for sharing content from afirst client to a second client;

FIG. 2B is another flow diagram depicting a method for sharing contentfrom a first client to a second client;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an implementation of the serverof FIG. 1 in greater detail;

FIG. 4 is an illustration of data received from a first client at aserver; and

FIG. 5 is an illustrative diagram depicting a plurality of first clientsand a plurality of second clients.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The various concepts introduced above and discussed in greater detailbelow may be implemented in any of numerous ways, as the describedconcepts are not limited to any particular manner of implementation.Examples of specific implementations and applications are providedprimarily for illustrative purposes.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a computer system 100 including a network101, a first client 102, a second client 106, and a server 104. Thesystem 100 may use at least one computer network 101. The network 101may include a local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), atelephone network, such as the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN),a wireless link, an intranet, the Internet, or combinations thereof. Thenetwork 101 may connect one or more devices via an Open SystemsInterconnection (OSI) model. In some implementation, the network 101 mayuse an internet protocol suite, including the Transmission ControlProtocol (TCP) and the Internet Protocol (IP).

The first client 102, the second client 106, and the server 104 may eachbe a computing device. A computing device (e.g. a data processingsystem) may include one or more processors, memory, and networkinterface. The one or more processors may be configured to executeinstructions stored in memory to perform one or more operationsdescribed herein. The one or more processors and the memory device mayform a processing module. The processor may include a microprocessor, ageneral purpose processor, an application-specific integrated circuit(ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a data processor, alogic devices, a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processingunit (GPU), a group of processing components, other suitable electronicprocessing components, or combinations thereof. The processor may beconnected directly or indirectly (e.g. via a bus) to the memory and thenetwork interface. The memory may include, but is not limited to, anytype of volatile, non-volatile memory, media, memory device, electronic,optical, magnetic, semiconductor memory device, or any other storage ortransmission device capable of providing processor with programinstructions and/or data. The memory may include an optical disk,magnetic disk, hard disks, internal disks, removable disks,magneto-optical disks, memory chip, read-only memory (ROM),random-access memory (RAM), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-OnlyMemory (EEPROM), erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM), flashmemory, or any other suitable memory from which processor can readinstructions and/or data. The instructions may include code and/or datafrom any suitable machine-readable code or source code. The machine codemay be from source code, which may be in one or more computerprogramming languages (including scripting language or markup language)such as, but not limited to, ACTIONSCRIPT®, C, C++, C #, Cascading StyleSheets (CSS), DART®, ECMASCRIPT®, Extensible Markup Language (XML),JAVA®, JAVASCRIPT® including JAVASCRIPT® Object Notation (JSON), PERL®,Hyptertext Markup Language (HTML), PYTHON®, TypeScript, VBScript, VISUALBASIC®, or any other language. In addition to the processing circuit, acomputing device may include one or more databases configured to storedata. A data storage device may be connected to a computing devicethrough the network 101. The computing device may include input and/oroutput (e.g., an electronic display, a touch screen, a virtual realitydisplay, a speaker, a keyboard, a pointing device, a mouse, amicrophone, a printer, a gamepad, a camera, etc.). The computing devicemay be connected to the network 101 via a network interface. The networkinterface may be a communication interface that includes wired orwireless interfaces (e.g., jacks, antennas, transmitters, receivers,transceivers, wire terminals, Ethernet ports, WiFi transceivers,Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy, near field communication (NFC),ultrasonic sounds, radio-frequency identification (RFID), etc.) forconducting data communications with local or remote devices or systemsvia the network 101. A network interface may have a corresponding moduleor software that works in conjunction with hardware components. Thenetwork interface may allow a computing device to communicate with andexchange data with other computing devices via the network 101. Thenetwork interface may receive data from or transmit data to theprocessor, memory, and/or any module or application in memory.

The first client 102 may be a computing device. Some implementations ofthe computer system 100 may include a plurality of first clients 102.The first client 102 may include any number and/or type of user-operableelectronic device. For instance, a first client 102 may include adesktop computer, laptop, convertible PC, smartphone, wearable device,smart watch, tablet, phablet, personal digital assistant, set-top box,smart television, gaming console device, mobile communication device,remote workstation, client terminal, entertainment console, or any otherdevice configured to communicate with other computing devices, systems,and servers via the network 101. The first client 102 may be capable ofcommunicating with the server 104, and/or the second client 106 via thenetwork 101. The first client 102 may be capable of determining itslocation, such as geographic location (“geolocation”). In someimplementations, the first client 102 may determine its geographiclocation via global positioning system (GPS). In some implementations,the first client 102 may determine its geographic location viaconnection with a network 101. For instance, the first client 102 may beassigned an IP address by the network 101 and determine its geolocationvia the IP address. In some implementations, the first client 102 may becapable of receiving location information from user input. For instance,a user may select a location on a map or designate coordinates. In someimplementations, the location may be defined in terms of the networklocation or characteristics. For instance, the location of the firstclient 102 may be defined in terms of the IP address, ping or number ofhops to a specified IP address, access to a specific network, type ofnetwork, etc.

The first client 102 can execute an application to send content to aserver 104 over the network 101. An application may be a mobileapplication, a web browser, a chat program, a stand-alone application, awidget application, a plug-in application, or any type application. Thewidget and the plug-in application may be a third-party application. Theapplication may be written in any programming language. For instance,the widget or the plug-in application may be written in JAVASCRIPT. Theapplication may use an application programmable interface (API) tocommunicate to the server 104 or an API to communicate with a secondapplication executing on the first client 102 configured to communicatewith the server 104. The application may be configured to allow a userto select a content to be shared, and accept a unique identifier fromthe user. The application may also receive location input from the user,or use a location of the first client 102. The application on the firstclient 102 may send the shared content, unique identifier, and thelocation to the server 104. The shared content, unique identifier, andthe location are described in greater detail below in relation to FIG.4. In some implementations, the first client 102 may send the uniqueidentifier to the second client 106 via the network 101 and/or via thenetwork interface. For instance, the first client 102 may send theunique identifier to the second client 106 via a Bluetooth signal, NFC,or ultrasonic sound. In another instance, a first user of the firstclient 102 may communicate the unique identifier to a second user of thesecond client 106. For instance, the first user may tell the second userthe unique identifier via email, short message service (SMS) text,instant messaging, speech, etc. In some implementations, the first usermay update a website or a social networking site (e.g. via TWITTER) theunique identifier, through which the second user may obtain the uniqueidentifier.

The second client 106 may be a computing device, similar to the firstclient 102. Some implementations of the computer system 100 may includea plurality of second clients 106. A plurality of second clients 106 mayrequest the same shared content. A second client 106 may receive inputfrom a user of the second client 106. The second client 106 may beconfigured to request the shared content from the server 104. In someimplementations, the second client 106 may receive a notification fromthe server 104 without sending a request to the server 106. Thenotification may indicate, for instance, an availability of a sharedcontent. In some implementations, the second client 106 may execute anapplication that communicates with the server 104 that downloads theshared content.

The server 104 may be a computing device. Some implementations of thecomputer system 100 may include a plurality of servers 104. A server 104may be connected to the network 101 and be configured to communicate toa first client 102 and a second client 106. The server 104 may comprisememory, processor, and network interface. The server 104 may furthercomprise a database or be configured to communicate with a database. Theserver 104 may be part of an infrastructure provider or a cloudcomputing platform. The server 104 may execute one or more virtualmachines. The server 104 is described in greater detail in relation toFIG. 3.

FIG. 2A is a flow diagram depicting a method for sharing content from afirst client to a second client. In brief overview, the method 200generally includes: receiving a shared content, a first location, and aunique identifier (step 205); receiving a request from a second client,the request comprising a second location and the unique identifier (step210); determining that the second location is within a predefineddistance from the first location (step 215); and sending the sharedcontent to the second client (step 220). The method optionally includeshandling API calls associated with the shared content (step 208) andhandling API calls of the request (step 212).

Still referring to FIG. 2A, and in more detail, the method includesreceiving a shared content, a first location, and a unique identifier(step 205). A server may receive the shared content, first location andunique identifier. A first client may send the shared content, firstlocation and unique identifier. The server may associate the firstlocation and the unique identifier with the shared content.

The shared content may comprise one or more of file, calendar event,document, picture, video, audio, streaming media, rich media, andapplication data. In some implementations, the shared content may bespecified by the first client and retrieved by the server via thenetwork. For instance, the first client may specify the URL of theshared content and the server may download the shared content. In someimplementations, the shared content may be hosted on a file sharingservice and the server may download or copy the content from the filesharing service. In some implementations, the server may store areference or the location of the content (e.g. the URL or on the filesharing service) instead of downloading or copying the content. Theshared content may comprise an access to a stream of data from the firstclient 102; for instance, the shared content may enable a video streamand/or a voice-over-IP from the first client 102 to a second client 106.The shared content, first location and unique identifier are describedin greater detail in relation to FIG. 4.

In some implementations, the server may determine whether the uniqueidentifier is already in use. For instance, the server may receive aunique identifier, compare it against a plurality of unique identifiersin a database, and determine that the received unique identifier may notbe used because it is in the plurality of unique identifiers. The servermay then notify the first client for another unique identifier orsuggest a generated unique identifier not in the plurality of uniqueidentifiers. In some implementations, the server and/or the first clientmay generate a unique identifier. In some implementations, the firstclient may not send the unique identifier, and the server may generateor assign the unique identifier to the shared content. For instance, theunique identifier may be generated based on the first location. In someimplementations, the first client may be logged in to an account beforesending the shared content, and the server and/or the first client maygenerate or assign a unique identifier based on the account. The uniqueidentifier may be generated based on one or more of the account, theshared content, the first location, the predefined distance, and/orconfiguration settings. For instance, the unique identifier may begenerated via a hash function or a concatenation of the first locationand an account name of the account. In another instance, acharacteristic of the shared content, e.g. file name or file size, maybe used as an input to a hash function that outputs a unique identifier.In some implementations, the unique identifier may be randomlygenerated. In some implementations, if the unique identifier is alreadyin use, the server may generate a second unique identifier not in theplurality of unique identifier. In some implementations, the server maycommunicate with a database storing a plurality of unique identifiersand receive an available unique identifier not in the database. In someimplementations, the server may filter the unique identifier, forinstance for profanity or vulgar words. The filtered unique identifiermay be presented to a first user of the first client or renamed. In someimplementations, the server may filter or rename a received uniqueidentifier based on availability in the database storing the pluralityof unique identifiers.

In some implementations, a shared content may have the same uniqueidentifier as one or more unique identifiers in the plurality of uniqueidentifiers, such that the unique identifier may not be unique. In suchimplementations, a combination of the unique identifier and the firstlocation may be unique as compared to all other combinations in theplurality of unique identifiers with the respective locations. Forinstance, the unique identifier may be “Interview Calendar Invite” withan associated first location in Atlanta, Ga. Another unique identifierin the plurality of unique identifiers may also be “Interview CalendarInvite” with an associated location of Boston, Mass. Both combinationsof unique identifiers and locations may be allowed. In someimplementations, a combination of the unique identifier and an accountassociated with the first location may be unique as compared to allother combinations in the plurality of unique identifiers with therespective accounts.

In some implementations, the first location may be a location of thefirst client, a location of an account associated with the first client,or a location specified on the first client. For instance, the firstlocation may be determined by the first client which be a GPS-enabledevice. In another instance, the first client may be logged in under afirst account associated with a first client. In yet another instance, afirst user may specify the first location on a map presented on thefirst client. In yet another instance, an application or a plug-inexecuting on the first client may specify the first location. In someimplementations, the first client may not send the first location, andthe server may determine the first location of the first client. Forinstance, the server may determine a network characteristic of the firstclient (e.g. IP address) and determine the location of the first client.In some implementations, the first client may be logged in to an accountbefore sending the shared content, and the server may determine adefault location from the account; when the first client uploads theshared content, the server may associate the default location with theshared content. In some implementations, the server may obtain the firstlocation by querying the first client. The first location may be definedin terms of geolocation, postal address, IP address, as part of ageographic hierarchy, etc.

In some implementations, the server may further receive a predefineddistance from the first client or specified by an account associatedwith the first client. The predefined distance may define, delimit, orrestrict the shared content within an area, a geographic region, or alocation centered on the first location. In some implementations, thepredefined distance may define a maximum distance between the firstlocation and a second location. The predefined distance may be anydistance between, for instance, zero feet to five hundred miles. In someimplementations, the predefined distance may define a maximum distancebetween the first client and the second device. In some implementations,the server may not receive a predefined distance, and in suchimplementations, the server may associate a default predefined distancewith the shared content. In some implementations, the predefineddistance may be unlimited, such that the shared content may be accessedfrom anywhere. In some implementations, the predefined distance may bedefined in terms of a geographic hierarchy. The predefined distance maybe defined in terms of a zip code, phone number area code, city, county,state, country, or any other geographic designation. For instance, thepredefined distance may specify that any requests for the shared contentmay be made from within the same zip code as the first location. In someimplementations, the predefined distance may be defined in terms ofnetwork characteristic. For instance, the predefined distance may bedefined in terms of range of IP addresses, geographic regions associatedwith IP addresses, pings or number of hops to a specified IP address ordomain address, access to a specific network such as a specific serviceset identifier, type of network such as WiFi or cellular dataconnection, etc.

In some implementations, the server may receive additional configurationsettings from the first client. For instance, the server may receive aconfiguration setting for whether the shared content should bebroadcasted to one or more second clients within a predefined distancefrom the first location. In implementations where the server receives abroadcast setting for the shared content, the serve may identify one ormore second clients to which the server will broadcast the availabilityof the shared content. For instance, the server may notify a pluralityof second clients that are each determined to be within a predefineddistance from the first location, as described in relation to step 215.In some implementations, each second client may be associated with anaccount and/or a setting that specifies that the second client mayreceive or view broadcasted shared content. In some implementations,each second client may be associated with the unique identifier, with apassword associated with the shared content, or any other authorizationor authentication. In some implementations, the server may determine thesecond location in response to the second client executing anapplication or a plug-in. After notifying the plurality of secondclients, the server may receive from a second client a request for theshared content as described in relation to step 210.

In another instance, the server may receive a password for the sharedcontent, such that any second client requesting the shared content withthe unique identifier must also provide the password to access theshared content. In some implementations, one or more configurationsettings may be used together. For instance, the broadcast setting maybe combined with the password setting; a password may be required to benotified of a broadcast of the shared content and/or to access theshared content. In some implementations, the configuration setting mayinclude additional authorization or authentication required foraccessing the shared content. For instance, a second client must providethe additional authorization when attempting to access the sharedcontent. The additional authorization or authentication may be used byan application or a plug-in executing on the first client and/or thesecond client. In some implementations, the configuration setting mayinclude a valid time parameter, which may define a duration of time theshared content will be available to be accessed or a time at which theshared content will not be accessible. The duration of time may be anyduration of time between, for instance, 30 seconds to indefinite (e.g.until the shared content is taken down by a first account associatedwith the shared content, until the first account is deactivated, oruntil the collapse of the universe). In some implementations, one ormore of the configuration settings may be set with default values. Forinstance, the default value for the duration of time may be one year.

In some implementations, the server may optionally handle API callsassociated with the shared content (step 208). The API calls may be partof the shared content or part of configuration settings. The API callsmay include one or more parameters. For instance, a plug-in identifiermay be a parameter of an API call. A plug-in may be associated with aplug-in identifier which may be passed in as a parameter of an API call.A plug-in may include, for instance, a chat program, or a pillow fightprogram, etc. In some implementations, the API call may includeaccessing a database, to modify or create a shared content. Forinstance, a pillow fight plug-in may make an API call that updates adocument in a database that stores a time and location of a pillow fightevent. In some implementations, an API call may generate a uniqueidentifier such that the unique identifier comprises the plug-inidentifier, shared content, and or the first location.

The server may receive a request from a second client, the requestcomprising a second location and the unique identifier (step 210). Theserver may determine that the unique identifier received from the secondclient is the same as the unique identifier received from the firstclient. In some implementations, the second location may be a locationof the second client, a location of an account associated with thesecond client, or a location specified on the second client. Forinstance, the second location may be determined by the second clientwhich may be a GPS-enabled device. The second location may be associatedwith the second client or with a second account logged in on the secondclient. The second location may be specified by a second user on thesecond client or by an application or a plug-in executing on the secondclient. In some implementations, the request may not specify a secondlocation. The server may retrieve a default location associated with thesecond client or may process the request without a second location.

The second client may receive the unique identifier from the firstclient. The first client may send the unique identifier to the secondclient. In some implementations, the first client may send the uniqueidentifier via a Bluetooth signal. For instance, the first client maypair with the second client via a Bluetooth connection. In anotherinstance, the first client may transmit the unique identifier to thesecond client without pairing via a Bluetooth signal using advertisingmode or friendly name. In some implementations, the second client mayreceive the unique identifier from the first client via NFC. In someimplementations, the second client may scan for the unique identifier.For instance, the second client may scan a QR code and decode it for theunique identifier. In another instance, the second client may scan aRFID tag for the unique identifier. In some implementations, a firstuser of the first client may communicate the unique identifier to asecond user of the second client. The second client may then use theunique identifier as part of a request to the server for the sharedcontent.

In some implementations, the server may further receive a password. Theserver may receive the password separately (e.g. in a subsequentcommunication with the second client) or as part of the requestcomprising the unique identifier and the second location. The passwordmay be required depending on whether a password was specified by thefirst client when uploading the shared content. The server may furtherreceive additional authorization or authentication. For instance, aplug-in executing on the second client may be a chat program, and thechat program may send an authorization information specifying that thesecond client is authorized by the first client to communicate with thefirst client.

In some implementations, the server may check the unique identifieragainst a plurality of unique identifiers. The server may find oneunique identifier from the plurality of unique identifiers that matchesthe unique identifier received from the second client. In someimplementations, the server may access or query a database storing theplurality of unique identifiers. The server may access the database withthe unique identifier or with a combination of the unique identifier andthe second location. The database may return an entry in the databasethat comprises the shared content, the unique identifier, and the firstlocation. In some implementations, the entry may further comprise theaccount associated with the first device and/or the shared content. Insome implementations, the database may first look for the uniqueidentifier received from the second client, and upon not finding theunique identifier, notify the server that no entry with the specifiedunique identifier exists. In some implementations, the database may finda plurality of entries, each entry matching the unique identifierreceived from the second client and each entry associated with arespective shared content. For instance, the unique identifier is“Interview Calendar Invite,” there may be multiple entries in thedatabase, each comprising a unique identifier of “Interview CalendarInvite” and a respective shared content. One of the shared content maybe for an interview in Atlanta, Ga., and another shared content may befor an interview in Boston, Mass. In some implementations, each of theplurality of entries may be considered as a match for the uniqueidentifier. In some implementations, the server and/or the database maynot find any unique identifiers in the plurality of unique identifiersthat matches the unique identifier received from the second client. Insuch implementations, the server may notify the second client that thereceived unique identifier is invalid.

In some implementations, the server may determine that the uniqueidentifier in the plurality of unique identifiers is associated with ashared content and a password. In such implementations, the server maydetermine whether the password provided by the second client matches thepassword associated with the shared content. If the passwords do notmatch, the server may inform the second client that the passwordprovided by the second client was invalid. If the passwords match, theserver may continue processing the request from the second client. Insome implementation, the server may perform additional checks onauthorization and authentication. For instance, the unique identifierfound in the plurality of unique identifier may be associated with ashared content and additional authorization and/or authentication.

In some implementations, the server may optionally handle API callsassociated with the request (step 212). The API calls may be part of therequest. In some implementations, the API calls may be generated basedon the unique identifier. For instance, part of the unique identifiermay be a plug-in identifier. The API calls may include one or moreparameters. For instance, a plug-in identifier may be a parameter of anAPI call. In some implementations, the API call may include accessing adatabase, to modify or access a shared content. For instance, a pillowfight plug-in may make an API call that access a document in a databasethat stores the time and location of a pillow fight event.

The server may determine that the second location is within a predefineddistance from the first location (step 215). After finding a uniqueidentifier that matches, the server may compare the first locationassociated with the found unique identifier with the second location ofthe response from the second client. The comparison of the firstlocation and the second location may be a determination of a distancebetween the first location and the second location. The server maydetermine that the distance is within (or less than) a predefineddistance. The distance may be determined as a geographical distance, forinstance using a flat-surface formulae, spherical-surface formulae, or aellipsoidal-surface formulae. The predefined distance may be a defaultvalue, defined by the first client, or associated with the sharedcontent. In some implementations, the server may determine that thedistance between the first location and the second location is greaterthan the predefined distance. In response, the server may inform thesecond client that the shared content is unavailable due to the distancebeing greater than the predefined distance. In some implementations, theserver may compare the first location with the second location using ageographic hierarchy. For instance, the first location may specify acity, and the predefined distance may specify that the second locationmust be within the same city as the first location. In someimplementations, the server may compare the first location with thesecond location using a network characteristic specified by thepredefined distance. For instance, the predefined distance may specify arange of IP addresses and the server may determine whether the secondclient at the second location has an IP address that is within the rangeof IP addresses. In some implementations, matching passwords andperforming additional authorization and authentication may occur afterdetermining that second location is within a predefined distance fromthe first location.

In some implementations, the server may determine a plurality ofdistances for a plurality of entries that each match the uniqueidentifier, and determine one or more entries from the plurality ofentries that are within a predefined distance from the first location.For instance, the server may find a plurality of entries in thedatabase, each entry comprising unique identifier of “Pillow Fight.”Each entry may be associated with a respective location. The server maycompare the second location in the request with each respective locationand determine one or more entries that are each within a predefineddistance from the first location. The server may display the one or moreentries, or the one or more shared content associated with the entries,to the second client.

In some implementations, the server may not determine that the secondlocation is within a predefined distance from the first location. Forinstance, the server may determine that the predefined distance is notdefined, a negative value, infinity, or some value indicating that thesecond location does not need to be within the predefined distance ofthe first location. In another instance, a configuration settingassociated with the shared content may indicate that the second locationdoes not need to be within the predefined distance from the firstlocation.

The server may send the shared content to the second client (step 220).The second client may access, download, or copy the shared content. Thesecond client or the server may open a stream of data referenced by theshared content. The server may send a reference to a location (e.g. aURL) of the shared content. For instance, the shared content may be on afile-sharing service. An application executing on the second client mayprocess the shared content. In some implementations, the second clientmay communicate to the server or to the first client the receipt of theshared content.

FIG. 2B is another flow diagram depicting a method for sharing contentfrom a first client to a second client. In brief overview, the method250 generally includes: receiving a shared content and a uniqueidentifier (step 205′); receiving a request from a second client, therequest comprising the unique identifier (step 210′); and sending theshared content to the second client (step 220′).

Still referring to FIG. 2B, and in more detail, the method includesreceiving a shared content and a unique identifier (step 205′). Thisstep may be similar to step 205 of FIG. 2A. The server may associate theshared content with the unique identifier. A first client may send theshared content and the unique identifier. In some implementations, thefirst client may have Bluetooth capabilities, and in otherimplementations, the first client may lack Bluetooth capabilities. Theshared content may be associated with an account associated with orlogged in on the first client.

The server may receive a request from a second client, the requestcomprising the unique identifier (step 210′). This step may be similarto step 210 of FIG. 2A. The server may determine that the uniqueidentifier received from the second client is the same as the uniqueidentifier received from the first client. In some implementations, thesecond client may receive the unique identifier from the first client.For instance, the second client may receive the unique identifier fromthe first client via a Bluetooth signal, as the second client may beclose (e.g., within range of the Bluetooth signal) to the first device.In some implementations, the second client may receive input of theunique identifier from a user of the second client. For instance, thesecond client may open a dialog or a text input that allows the user toinput the unique identifier, which is transmitted to the server. In someimplementations, the second client may scan for the unique identifier.For instance, the second client may scan a QR code and decode it for theunique identifier. In another instance, the second client may scan aRFID tag for the unique identifier. The second device may receive theunique identifier from the first device, a user of the first device, auser of the second device, or an input device.

The server may send the shared content to the second client (step 220′).This step may be similar to step 220 of FIG. 2A. If the server maydetermine that the unique identifier received from the second client isthe same as the unique identifier received from the first client, theserver may allow the second client to access, download, or copy theshared content. The second client or the server may open a stream ofdata referenced by the shared content. The server may send a referenceto a location (e.g. a URL) of the shared content.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an implementation of the serverof FIG. 1 in greater detail, shown to include a network interface 305, aprocessor 310, and memory 315. The network interface 305 may be one ormore communication interfaces that includes wired or wireless interfaces(e.g., jacks, antennas, transmitters, receivers, transceivers, wireterminals, Ethernet ports, WiFi transceivers, wireless chipset, airinterface etc.) for conducting data communications with local or remotedevices or systems via the network 101. For instance, the networkinterface 305 may allow the server 104 to communicate with one or morefirst clients 102, one or more second clients 106, other servers 104 andone or more databases. In some implementations, the network interface305 may have corresponding modules or software that work in conjunctionwith hardware components. The network interface 305 may receive a sharedcontent, a first location and a unique identifier from the first client102. The network interface 305 may also receive a predefined distanceand other configuration settings from the first client 102. The networkinterface 305 may receive a request from a second client 106, therequest comprising a second location and the unique identifier. Therequest may be to access, copy, or download the shared content. Thenetwork interface 305 may send the shared content to the second client106. The network interface 305 may send a reference to the sharedcontent to the second client 106. The network interface 305 may send anotification to a second client 106 regarding an availability of ashared content at a second location within a predefined location of afirst location. The network interface 305 may send a broadcast to aplurality of second clients 106 that are each associated with a secondlocation determined to be within a predefined location from the firstlocation of the shared content.

The processor 310 may be implemented as a general purpose processor, anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC), one or more fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGAs), a Central Processing Unit (CPU), aGraphical Processing Unit (GPU), a group of processing components, orother suitable electronic processing components. The processor 310 maybe connected directly or indirectly to the memory 315 and the networkinterface 305. The processor 310 may read, write, delete, or otherwiseaccess data stored in memory 315 or other components. The processor 310may execute instructions stored in memory 315.

Memory 315 may include one or more devices (e.g., RAM, ROM, flashmemory, hard disk storage, etc.) for storing data and/or computer codefor completing and/or facilitating the various processes, layers, andmodules described in the present disclosure. Memory 502 may includevolatile memory or non-volatile memory. Memory 315 may include databasecomponents, object code components, script components, or any other typeof information structure for supporting the various activities andinformation structures described in the present disclosure. In someimplementations, memory 315 is communicably connected to processor 310and includes computer code (e.g., data modules stored in memory 315) forexecuting one or more processes described herein. In brief overview,memory 315 is shown to include a network module 320, content manager325, and shared content database 360. Memory 315 may further include oneor more additional databases such as a clients database 370. In someimplementations, one or more databases may be connected to the server104 via the network interface 305 over a network 101.

Still referring to FIG. 3, memory 315 is shown to include a networkmodule 320. The network module 320 may work in together with the networkinterface 305 to receive and transmit data via the network 101. Thenetwork module 320 may be part of an application, operating system,kernel, driver, runtime environment, and/or other software. The networkmodule 320 may provide one or more applications or modules in memory 315access to the network 101.

Memory 315 is further shown to include a content manager 325, whichcomprises an optional API call handler 330, an upload manager 345, adownload manager 350, an optional broadcast module 354, and a distancemodule 358. In some implementations, the upload manager 345 and thedownload manager 350 may be a single manager or application. The contentmanager 325 may communicate with or operate under a virtual machine, anoperating system, kernel, runtime environment, and/or other software.For instance, the content manager 325 may operate under NODE.JS runtimeenvironment.

The upload manager 345 may receive, from the network module 320, ashared content, a first location and a unique identifier. In someimplementations, the upload manager 345 may query a shared contentdatabase 360 to determine whether the unique identifier is available.For instance, the shared content database 360 may store a plurality ofunique identifiers, and the upload manager 345 may query the sharedcontent database 360 with the unique identifier. The upload manager 345may associate the received shared content with an account. The uploadmanager 345 may receive additional configuration settings from thenetwork module 320. The upload manager 345 may notify a first client 102via the network module 320 that the received unique identifier isunavailable. The upload manager 345 may generate a unique identifier forthe shared content. The upload manager 345 may obtain a first locationassociated with the shared content. For instance, the upload manager 345may obtain a location associated with an account logged in on the firstdevice from the clients database 370. The upload manager 345 may querythe first device for its location to use as the first location. Theupload manager 345 may store the shared content in the shared contentdatabase 360. The upload manager 345 may communicate with the broadcastmodule 354 based on configuration settings associated with the sharedcontent. For instance, the configuration settings may specify that theshared content should be broadcasted to one or more devices within apredefined location from the first location.

The content manager 325 may further include a download manager 350. Thedownload manager 350 may receive a request from a second client 106. Therequest may comprise a unique identifier and a second location. Thesecond location may be a location of the second client 106, a locationof an account associated with the second client 106, or a locationspecified on the second client 106. The download manager 350 may querythe second client 106 for the second location. The download manager 350may query a clients database 370 for a location of the second client 106or a location associated with an account associated with the secondclient 106. The download manager 350 may match the unique identifierfrom the second client 106 with one or more of a plurality of uniqueidentifiers. The plurality of unique identifiers may be stored in theshared content database 360 and/or a database of unique identifiers. Thedownload manager 350 may communicate with the distance module 358 todetermine whether a second location is within a predefined location ofthe first location associated with the shared content. The downloadmanager 350 may compare a password received from the second client 106with a password associated with the shared content. The download manager350 may provide the shared content to the second client 106. Forinstance, the download manager 350 may provide the shared content if thepassword provided by the second client 106 matches the passwordassociated with the shared content.

The content manager 325 may optionally include a broadcast module 354.The broadcast module 354 may broadcast the availability of the sharedcontent based on a configuration setting associated with the sharedcontent. In some implementations, the broadcast module 354 may beconfigured by the upload manager 345. For instance, the upload manager345 may generate or register an event with the broadcast module 354. Thebroadcast module 354 may execute on a different server. The broadcastmodule 354 may execute a process or a thread that notifies one or moresecond clients 106 the availability of the shared content. The broadcastmodule 354 may notify a second client 106 when the broadcast module 354detects that the second location of the second client 106 is within apredefined distance from the first location 102. For instance, if asecond client 106 enters an area defined by the predefined distance andthe first location, the broadcast module 354 may notify the secondclient 106 the availability of the shared content. In someimplementations, the broadcast module 354 may access the clientsdatabase 370 to determine one or more locations of one or more secondclients 106. In some implementations, the broadcast module 354 mayaccess the clients database 370 to determine an account settingassociated with a second client 106 to determine whether to notify thesecond client 106. The broadcast module 354 may communicate with thedistance module 358 to determine whether a second location is within apredefined location of the first location associated with the sharedcontent.

The content manager 325 may further include a distance module 358. Thedistance module 358 may determine that the second location of therequest is within a predefined distance from the first location. Thedistance module 358 may be called by the download manager 350, thebroadcast module 354, or any other application, manager, or module inmemory 315. The distance module 358 may obtain the first location storedin the shared content database 360. For instance, the download manager350 may call the distance module 358 with the first location as aparameter of the call, where the download manager 350 access the sharedcontent database 360 for the shared content and the first location. Thedistance module 358 may further obtain the predefined distanceassociated with the shared content. The predefined distance may bestored in the shared content database 360. The predefined distance maybe defined in terms of zip code, phone number area code, city, county,state, country, any other geographic designation, or networkcharacteristics.

The content manager 325 may further include an API call handler 330. TheAPI call handler 330 may be connected to the upload manager 345 and thedownload manager 350. The API call handler 330 may execute one or moreAPI calls made by the first client 102 or the second client 106. The APIcalls from the first client 102 may be associated or included with theshared content from the first client 102. The API calls from the secondclient 106 may be from the request from the second client 106. The APIcall handler 330 may receive one or more parameters for an API call. Oneof the parameters may be a plug-in identifier. The API call handler 330may pass one or more parameters to a plug-in module (not shown) such asa chat plug-in.

The memory 315 may include a shared content database 360. The sharedcontent database 360 may be a document-oriented database, a relationaldatabase, object model database, a structure query language (SQL)database, a not-only SQL (NoSQL) database, or any other type ofdatabase. In some implementations, the shared content database 360 maybe a MONGODB. The shared content database 360 may connected to theserver 104 via a network 101. The shared content database 360 mayreceive the shared content from the content manager 325, API callhandler 330, upload manager 345. The shared content database 360 mayreceive a first location, unique identifier, predefined distance, and/orconfiguration settings. The shared content database 360 may store aplurality of shared contents. The shared contents may be stored with arespective first location, unique identifier, predefined distance,and/or configuration settings. The shared content database 360 may bequeried with a unique identifier to determine whether the uniqueidentifier is currently in use. The shared content database 360 maygenerate a unique identifier that is not currently in use. In someimplementations, the shared content database 360 may include a pluralityof unique identifiers.

The memory 315 may optionally include a clients database 370. In someimplementations, the clients database 370 may be included with theshared content database 360. In some implementations, the clientsdatabase 370 may be a document-oriented database, a relational database,object model database, a structure query language (SQL) database, anot-only SQL (NoSQL) database, or any other type of database. The sharedcontent database 360 may connected to the server 104 via a network 101.The clients database 370 may store one or more accounts associated withthe first client 102 and the second client 106. The clients database 370may store locations of the first client 102 and the second client 106.The content manager 325 including the upload manager 345, downloadmanager 350, broadcast module 354, and the distance module 358, mayaccess or modify account settings, first location, or second locationfrom the clients database 370.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of data 400 received from a first client at aserver. The server may receive shared content 405 and may optionallyreceive first location 410, unique identifier 415, predefined distance420, and/or configuration settings 425. The shared content 405 mayinclude a file, calendar event, document, text, image, animation, video,audio, rich-media, or any other data used by the application. In someimplementations, an application or a plug-in executing on the firstclient may generate the shared content. The first location 410 may bedefined in terms of a geolocation, a network location orcharacteristics, geographic hierarchy location, or any other location.The first location 410 may be obtained from the first client or anaccount associated with the first client. For instance, the server mayreceive the first location 410 from the first client or query the firstclient for the first location 410. The unique identifier 415 may beobtained from the first client or generated by the server. For instance,the server may receive the unique identifier 415 from the first client,generate the unique identifier 415 based on the shared content 405, orrandomly generate the unique identifier 415. The unique identifier 415may comprise a string of characters. For instance, the unique identifier415 may include alphanumeric, symbols, punctuations, and othercharacters. The predefined distance 420 may be obtained from the firstclient. In some implementations, the predefined distance 420 may be setto a default predefined distance. The predefined distance 420 may bedefined in terms of geographic distance, geographic hierarchy, networkcharacteristic, or any other distance. In some implementations,configuration settings 425 may include whether the shared content 405should be broadcasted, password for the shared content 405, additionalauthorization or authentication, and/or a duration of time during whichthe shared content 405 will be available. One or more configurationsettings 425 may be provided by the first client or set to a defaultvalue. The data 400 may be stored in one or more databases, such as theshared content database.

FIG. 5 is an illustrative diagram 500 depicting locations of a pluralityof first clients 102 a-b and a plurality of second clients 106 a-c. Afirst client 102 a may send a shared content to a server (not shown) ata first location of the first client 102 a. The shared content may beassociated with a predefined distance that defines a first area 505. Thefirst client 102 a may send a unique identifier associated with theshared content to the plurality of second clients 106 a-c. For instance,the first client 102 a may send the unique identifier to a second server106 a via ultrasonic sound, to another second server 106 b viaBluetooth, and to yet another second server 106 c via SMS text message.Each of the plurality of second clients 106 a-c may send a request tothe server with the unique identifier and a respective second location.For instance, a second client 106 a may send a request to the serverwith its own location as the second location and the unique identifierreceived from the first client 102 a. In response to each request, theserver may determine whether the second client making the request iswithin the area 505, e.g. whether the second location is within apredefined distance from the first location. In response to the requestfrom second clients 106 a and 106 b, the server may determine that thetwo second clients 106-b are within the area 505 and send the shardcontent to the second clients 106 a-b. The server may also determinethat one of the second clients 106 c is outside the area 505 and notifythat second client 106 c that the shared content from the first client102 a is not available at the present location of the second client. Insome implementations, the second client 106 c may later move within thearea 505 and request the server for the shared content, at which pointthe server may send the shared content to the second client 106 c.

Another first client 102 b may upload another shared content from afirst location. The first client 102 b may also provide a predefineddistance that defines a smaller area 510 than the area 505 defined bythe predefined distance associated with the other first client 102 a.The first client 102 b may provide a unique identifier, password, and abroadcast setting that specifies that server will notify second clients106 b-c that are within the smaller area 510 of a shared content fromthe first client 102 b. The server may not notify a second client 106 athat is outside the smaller area 510. However, if the second client 106a later moves within the smaller area 510, the server may notify thesecond client 106 a of the availability of the shared content from thefirst client 102 b.

Implementations of the subject matter and the operations described inthis specification may be implemented in digital electronic circuitry,or in computer software, firmware, or hardware, including the structuresdisclosed in this specification and their structural equivalents, or incombinations of one or more of them. Implementations of the subjectmatter described in this specification may be implemented as one or morecomputer programs, i.e., one or more modules of computer programinstructions, encoded on one or more computer storage medium forexecution by, or to control the operation of, data processing apparatus.Alternatively or in addition, the program instructions may be encoded onan artificially-generated propagated signal (e.g., a machine-generatedelectrical, optical, or electromagnetic signal) that is generated toencode information for transmission to suitable receiver apparatus forexecution by a data processing apparatus. A computer storage medium maybe, or be included in, a computer-readable storage device, acomputer-readable storage substrate, a random or serial access memoryarray or device, or a combination of one or more of them. Moreover,while a computer storage medium is not a propagated signal, a computerstorage medium may be a source or destination of computer programinstructions encoded in an artificially-generated propagated signal. Thecomputer storage medium may also be, or be included in, one or moreseparate components or media (e.g., multiple disks, or other storagedevices). Accordingly, the computer storage medium is both tangible andnon-transitory. The operations described in this disclosure may beimplemented as operations performed by a data processing apparatus ondata stored on one or more computer-readable storage devices or receivedfrom other sources.

The term “client or “server” include all kinds of apparatus, devices,and machines for processing data, including a programmable processor, acomputer, a system on a chip, or multiple ones, or combinations, of theforegoing. The apparatus may include special purpose logic circuitry,e.g., a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC). The apparatus may also include, in additionto hardware, code that creates an execution environment for the computerprogram in question (e.g., code that constitutes processor firmware, aprotocol stack, a database management system, an operating system, across-platform runtime environment, a virtual machine, or a combinationof one or more of them). The apparatus and execution environment mayrealize various different computing model infrastructures, such as webservices, distributed computing and grid computing infrastructures.

The systems and methods of the present disclosure may be completed byany computer program. A computer program (also known as a program,software, software application, script, or code) may be written in anyform of programming language, including compiled or interpretedlanguages, declarative or procedural languages, and it may be deployedin any form, including as a stand-alone program or as a module,component, subroutine, object, or other unit suitable for use in acomputing environment. A computer program may, but need not, correspondto a file in a file system. A program may be stored in a portion of afile that holds other programs or data (e.g., one or more scripts storedin a markup language document), in a single file dedicated to theprogram in question, or in multiple coordinated files (e.g., files thatstore one or more modules, sub-programs, or portions of code). Acomputer program may be deployed to be executed on one computer or onmultiple computers that are located at one site or distributed acrossmultiple sites and interconnected by a communication network.

The processes and logic flows described in this specification may beperformed by one or more programmable processors executing one or morecomputer programs to perform actions by operating on input data andgenerating output. The processes and logic flows may also be performedby, and apparatus may also be implemented as, special purpose logiccircuitry (e.g., an FPGA or an ASIC).

Processors suitable for the execution of a computer program include bothgeneral and special purpose microprocessors, and any one or moreprocessors of any kind of digital computer. Generally, a processor willreceive instructions and data from a read-only memory or a random accessmemory or both. The essential elements of a computer are a processor forperforming actions in accordance with instructions and one or morememory devices for storing instructions and data. Generally, a computerwill also include, or be operatively coupled to receive data from ortransfer data to, or both, one or more mass storage devices for storingdata (e.g., magnetic, magneto-optical disks, or optical disks). However,a computer need not have such devices. Moreover, a computer may beembedded in another device (e.g., a mobile telephone, a smart phone, asmart watch, a smart television, a personal digital assistant (PDA), amobile audio or video player, a game console, a set-top box, a GlobalPositioning System (GPS) receiver, or a portable storage device (e.g., auniversal serial bus (USB) flash drive), etc.). Devices suitable forstoring computer program instructions and data include all forms ofnon-volatile memory, media and memory devices semiconductor memorydevices (e.g., EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices; magnetic disks,e.g., internal hard disks or removable disks; magneto-optical disks; andoptical disks). The processor and the memory may be supplemented by, orincorporated in, special purpose logic circuitry.

To provide for interaction with a user, implementations of the subjectmatter described in this specification may be implemented on a computerhaving a display device (e.g., a LCD (liquid crystal display), OLED(organic light emitting diode), TFT (thin-film transistor), a plasmadisplay, flexible display, or any other monitor for displayinginformation to the user. The computer may also have an input (such as akeyboard, a pointing device, e.g., a mouse, trackball, etc., or a touchscreen, touch pad, etc.) by which the user may provide input to thecomputer. Other kinds of devices may be used to provide for interactionwith a user as well. For instance, feedback provided to the user may beany form of sensory feedback (e.g., visual feedback, auditory feedback,or tactile feedback), and input from the user may be received in anyform, including acoustic, speech, or tactile input. In addition, acomputer may interact with a user by sending documents to and receivingdocuments from a device that is used by the user; for instance, bysending web pages to a web browser on a user's device in response torequests received from the web browser.

Implementations of the subject matter described in this disclosure maybe implemented in a computing system that includes a back-end component(e.g., as a data server), a middleware component (e.g., an applicationserver), and/or a front-end component (e.g., a client computer) having agraphical user interface or a web browser through which a user mayinteract with an implementation of the subject matter described in thisdisclosure, or any combination of one or more such back-end, middleware,or front-end components. The components of the system may beinterconnected by any form or medium of digital data communication(e.g., a communication network). Communication networks include a LANand a WAN, an inter-network (e.g., the Internet), and peer-to-peernetworks (e.g., ad hoc peer-to-peer networks).

While this specification contains many specific implementation details,these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of anydisclosures or of what may be claimed, but rather as descriptions offeatures specific to particular implementations of particulardisclosures. Certain features that are described in this disclosure inthe context of separate implementations may also be implemented incombination in a single implementation. Conversely, various featuresthat are described in the context of a single implementation may also beimplemented in multiple implementations separately or in any suitablesubcombination. Moreover, although features may be described above asacting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, oneor more features from a claimed combination may in some cases be excisedfrom the combination, and the claimed combination may be directed to asubcombination or variation of a subcombination.

Similarly, while operations are depicted in the drawings in a particularorder, this should not be understood as requiring that such operationsbe performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, orthat all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirableresults. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processingmay be advantageous. Moreover, the separation of various systemcomponents in the implementations described above should not beunderstood as requiring such separation in all implementations, and itshould be understood that the described program components and systemsmay generally be integrated together in a single software product orpackaged into multiple software products embodied on one or moretangible media.

Thus, particular implementations of the subject matter have beendescribed. Other implementations are within the scope of the followingclaims. In some cases, the actions recited in the claims can beperformed in a different order and still achieve desirable results. Inaddition, the methods depicted in the accompanying figures do notnecessarily require the particular order shown, or sequential order, toachieve desirable results. In certain implementations, multitasking andparallel processing may be advantageous.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a server incommunication with a computing device and a smart phone via acommunication network, the server comprising memory storing instructionsand processor executing instructions to: store a shared content with aunique identifier associated with a QR code, in a database storing aplurality of unique identifiers, the shared content or computing devicebeing assigned to a unique identifier associated with a QR code, whereinthe unique identifier is generated based on the shared content and oneor more of an account, location, predefined distance, or configurationsetting, and wherein the unique identifier comprises one of ahexadecimal number, alphanumeric key, ASCII key, or UNICODE string;wherein, a software package executing on the smart phone causes thesmart phone to perform a QR code scan to obtain a QR code from thecomputing device, wherein the software package executing on the smartphone causes the smart phone to decode the unique identifier from the QRcode after performing the QR code scan; receive a request from the smartphone to access the shared content, the request comprising the uniqueidentifier, wherein the software package executing on the smart phone isconfigured to access to the shared content; determine, that the uniqueidentifier decoded from the scanned QR code, is associated with theshared content stored in the database by comparing the unique identifierdecoded from the scanned QR code, in the request, to a set of uniqueidentifiers stored with shared content in the database; and transmit tothe smart phone the shared content in response to the determination. 2.The system of claim 1, wherein the server is further configured toexecute instructions that cause the server to compare the uniqueidentifier received from the computing device to a plurality of uniqueidentifiers to determine whether the unique identifier in the request isassociated with the shared content.
 3. The system of claim 1, whereinthe server is further configured to execute instructions that cause theserver to receive the unique identifier from the computing device. 4.The system of claim 3, wherein the computing device generates the uniqueidentifier.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the server comprises acloud computing platform that executes one or more virtual machines. 6.The system of claim 1, wherein the server is further configured toexecute instructions that cause the server to handle an API (applicationprogrammable interface) call associated with the shared content.
 7. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the shared content is application dataprocessed by the smart phone.
 8. The system of claim 7, whereintransmittal of the shared content to the smart phone causes the smartphone to process the shared content.
 9. The system of claim 7, whereinthe transmittal of shared content to the smart phone causes the smartphone to process a stream of data associated with the shared content.10. The system of claim 1, wherein the server comprises memory storingfurther instructions and processor executing instructions to: prior toreceiving the request from the smart phone to access the shared content,transmit a notification to the smart phone indicating an availability ofshared content.
 11. The system of claim 10, wherein the availability ofshared content is based on a setting indicated in the shared content.12. The system of claim 10, wherein the availability of shared contentis based on a location of the smart phone.
 13. A non-transitory,computer storage medium having stored thereon computer executableinstructions that, when executed by a smart phone, cause the smart phoneto: scan a QR code that is associated with a computing device; decode aunique identifier from the scanned QR code, wherein the uniqueidentifier is associated with a computing device or a shared content,wherein the shared content is stored with the unique identifierassociated with a QR code in a database storing a set of uniqueidentifiers, wherein the unique identifier is generated based on theshared content and one or more of an account, location, predefineddistance, or configuration setting, and wherein the generated uniqueidentifier comprises one of a hexadecimal number, alphanumeric key,ASCII key, or UNICODE string, send a request to the server to access theshared content, the request comprising the unique identifier, whereinthe computer executable instructions executing on the smart phone isconfigured to cause the smart phone to access shared content; andreceive the shared content from the server in response to the scanningof the QR code, wherein the server determines that the unique identifierdecoded from the scanned QR code, in the request, is associated with theshared content stored in the database by comparing the unique identifierdecoded from the scanned QR code, in the request, to the set of uniqueidentifiers stored with shared content in the database.
 14. Thenon-transitory, computer storage medium of claim 13, wherein thecomputing device generates the shared content and sends the sharedcontent to the server.
 15. The non-transitory, computer storage mediumof claim 14, wherein the server is configured to compare the uniqueidentifier received from the computing device to a plurality of uniqueidentifiers to determine whether the unique identifier in the request isassociated with the shared content.
 16. The non-transitory, computerstorage medium of claim 13, wherein the request comprises an API(application programmable interface) call handled by the server.
 17. Thenon-transitory, computer storage medium of claim 13, wherein the servercomprises a cloud computing platform that executes one or more virtualmachines.
 18. The non-transitory, computer storage medium of claim 13,wherein the shared content is application data processed by the smartphone.
 19. The non-transitory, computer storage medium of claim 18,wherein transmittal of the shared content to the smart phone causes thesmart phone to process the shared content.
 20. The non-transitory,computer storage medium of claim 18, wherein the transmittal of sharedcontent to the smart phone causes the smart phone process a stream ofdata associated with the shared content.
 21. The non-transitory,computer storage medium of claim 13, wherein computer executableinstructions further cause the smart phone: prior to sending the requestto the server to access the shared content, receive a notification fromthe server indicating an availability of shared content.
 22. Thenon-transitory, computer storage medium of claim 21, wherein theavailability of shared content is based on a setting indicated in theshared content.
 23. The non-transitory, computer storage medium of claim21, wherein the availability of shared content is based on a location ofthe smart phone.
 24. A mobile device comprising: an NFC (near fieldcommunication) network interface; and a non-transitory, computer storagemedium having stored thereon computer executable instructions that, whenexecuted by the mobile device, cause the mobile device to: store ashared content with a unique identifier being sent via an NFC connectionin a database storing a plurality of unique identifiers, the uniqueidentifier being generated based on the shared content and one or moreof an account, location, predefined distance, or configuration setting,and assigned to a shared content, and wherein the generated uniqueidentifier comprises one of a hexadecimal number, alphanumeric key,ASCII key, or UNICODE string; establish an NFC connection with thecomputing device via the NFC network interface; send the uniqueidentifier to the computing device via the NFC connection; and wherein,the computing device is configured to send a request to the server toaccess the shared content, the request comprising the unique identifier;wherein a software package executing on the computing device isconfigured to access to the shared content; and wherein the serverdetermines whether the unique identifier received via the NFCconnection, in the request, is associated with the shared content storedin the database by comparing the unique identifier received via the NFCconnection, in the request, to a set of unique identifiers stored withshared content in the database; and wherein the computing device isconfigured to access the shared content stored in the database inresponse to the request.
 25. The mobile device of claim 24, wherein themobile device comprises a smart phone.
 26. The mobile computing deviceof claim 25, wherein the server comprises a cloud computing platformthat executes one or more virtual machines.
 27. The mobile computingdevice of claim 26, wherein the server generates the unique identifierand assigns the unique identifier to the shared content.
 28. The mobilecomputing device of claim 26, wherein a password is required for thecomputing device to access the shared content.
 29. The mobile computingdevice of claim 24, wherein the mobile device comprises a smart watch.